


A Love Like This

by skaey



Category: Reign (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-21
Updated: 2016-01-21
Packaged: 2018-05-15 08:21:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5778340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skaey/pseuds/skaey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Francis and Mary were in love once; the crazy, inseparable kind of love you only read about in books. Until things changed for the worse. Five years later they find themselves crossings paths once more. They say that everything happens for a reason, perhaps Fate has something more in store for them? (Alternate Universe/Modern)</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Love Like This

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Here's to my very first work posted here. Please go easy on any grammatical errors; I haven't written anything this long (unless you count thesis) in the longest time. 
> 
> Hope you guys enjoy! x

 

**Chapter One**

_"There are all kinds of love in this world, but never the same love twice."_

_– F. Scott Fitzgerald_

* * *

**Instagram Update:**

Not sure if I'm quite ready to leave the place I've called home for the past five years yet

 **marydeguise**   _posted a photo at the Paris Beauvais-Tille Airport 3 minutes ago_

His breath hitched. It was a photo of her back with the Notre-Dame Cathedral in the background. A place he knew she was so fond of – a place they _both_ had fond memories of. He could only hope her photo of the cathedral meant as much as to her as it did to him. 

It was a good thing her account was public.

* * *

Mary stared out the tinted mirror of the Rolls Royce, watching the blurry, colorful lights of the New York scenery outside. She forgot how exhausting it was attending these social political gatherings, a place where letting your guard down to enjoy people's company was nearly impossible. It used to be tolerable growing up surrounded by dear friends who made her feel like the world was in her reach, but now that she was older, she understood why her mother felt strained in these events. It was a lonely world full of plots, rumors and backstabbing. Having no one stand by your side was like going to war without your most trusted general. Even worse, at times.

Her iPhone buzzed loudly, bringing her attention back to reality.

"Hello, Kenna."

"Well hello to you, too. I’d like to ask how your crazy day went and how brutal the charity gala was but I’ll save the chitchat for later instead. Now are you heading here or not?" Really, Mary had been dreading this question. It never used to be a problem going to the after parties the socialites threw after a main function but since she had been away in France for almost five years, it felt like she would just be intruding. Or maybe she only felt that way because she wanted to avoid seeing a certain someone.

"Maybe," Mary paused, "but I'm really tired. From the flight, to all the meetings I had today, and from the gala." Mary's mother, Marie de Guise, ran Homme et Femme, a large retail corporation that brought in more than 150 brands ranging from boutique to luxury brands. Their corporation was ranked top three as the biggest and most successful in the United States and had recently budged itself to the top fifteen list of the most valuable corporations worldwide. It had been as expected the moment Mary started working her way in the company. Being the eldest, she was trained to study the business ever since she was a child in order for her to take over as soon as she was of age. It also helped that she had always been into fashion, so managing something she was fond of came easy to her.

"Are you really tired? Or are you just trying to hide? No bullshit, Mary." Kenna was always good in reading people; she had a knack for figuring things out when it came to emotions and feelings. And she was very frank about it, too. Ever since they were children, Kenna had always been the one who would bluntly spit out what everyone was too afraid to say out loud. It had been a habit that people loved and hated about her.

"Yes, and no." She sighed at she stared at the red traffic light in front of the car. She could easily tell her chauffeur to change their route since nothing in New York was too far from each other but she wasn't sure if she was ready to face him yet. A part of her was afraid of seeing him again; terrified that her walls would crumble in a matter of seconds. But another part of her was also curious to see how much had changed among her friends and how much they all had grown over the past five years. Would she breakdown? No, she was sure she wouldn’t. All the seasons away from him had temporarily melded her heart back together but she wasn’t sure whether she was ready to test herself yet.

"Then get your ass over here. No buts." Click. Kenna made her point and hung up, leaving Mary torn on what she should do. Mary didn't mind what her friends would think of her for not showing up. She could care less about what assumptions they would make out of her being absent tonight. Afer all, she had been away for five years already; what difference would another night make?

She sighed. She knew that she would soon run out of excuses and ways to hide in a small city like New York. And Mary was always taught to face the problems firsthand as soon as possible.

"Harry, take a left after the next light. We're stopping by Maison first."

Mary prayed to God that she was doing the right thing for herself.

* * *

Maison was simple, chic and cozy, and not loud and crowded as Mary had imagined it would be. She wasn't sure if she preferred the latter, considering there would be less chances of actually talking to people although the atmosphere would be inappropriate for their age. The place was spacious, decked with plush black sofas and fine glass tables that accentuated the dark mahogany walls. Red velvet curtains were draped around the place giving the customers a feeling of privacy and intimacy. The second she walked inside, she knew where their table was. They were by the VIP section by the far end and almost fully covered by the curtains. Their group wasn't large in number, but the aura they emitted was as stronger than the crowd's.

True enough she saw a flash of blonde hair to confirm her presumption.

Her chest clenched. Why? After all these years, how could she still easily find him in a sea full of people? It was unfair. She had gone away, or to be totally honest – she had fled to France in order to forget him. She had done all she could, hard as it was, to cut off all ties with her friends because it stung to hear about him. It hurt to be near him physically, but miles away from him mentally. It hurt to think about him, about what had happened. 

The first few months in France were lonely and somber. She remembered how she would whip her head back every single time a blonde crossed her path and then laugh at herself for being so hopeful only to be disappointed. She remembered how she was on the brink of the edge. How her heart would clench in sadness and how ashamed she was of the tears that she would frequently shed.

She had this wishful idea that he was desperately looking for her, that he wouldn’t stop finding her until he told her just how much her in his life. That he was wrong and he would fight for her. Do anything for her. Remind her that they were compatible, and that no one else could and would compare. And that they were soul mates; two halves of a pair that fit together perfectly.

But he never did.

She suddenly thought of turning around and leaving before anyone saw her. It was too early, too soon to see him. Her mind started throwing her flashbacks of what they used to be. Every time they would enter a room together, all eyes would automatically turn to the couple without them even knowing it. She was never fond of the paparazzi following them around on their every move but she remembered so clearly how people would mention how envious of they would look at each other like no one else in the world existed. It was blatantly noticeable in every shot taken of them together.

So no, Mary wasn't prepared to let her heart crack once again; she had worked too hard to putting the pieces back together. She stepped back, her heels barely making a sound on the mahogany floor.

"MARY!"

Shit. Too late to turn back now.

"You made it!" Kenna exclaimed loudly, rushing towards her. She hugged her friendly tightly while trying not to spill the glass of red wine she was holding. Mary patted her shoulder and smiled softly as her gaze landed on Bash who was just a few steps behind Kenna.

Out of all her friends, Kenna and Bash had insisted on keeping in touch with her. If there was anyone who knew and completely understood what she had gone through, it would be those two. Though the two had a rocky past together, they had booked a flight to Paris the moment Mary had succumbed and told them where she was and it was then she realized that these two were true friends she could count on. She was more surprised at them being able to survive an eight flight ride _together_.

Greer squealed in delight, running to Mary and enveloping her into a hug. Claude tipped her glass and gave her a warm smile that was oblivious to the rest. She never thought she would have had a good relationship with Claude, Francis' younger sister whom they hardly saw growing as she was away in boarding school most of the time. Sometimes Mary forgot Francis even had a younger sister in their family.

It all had changed a few years ago though. Mary and Claude had shared a few moments that unconsciously brought them closer than expected. It was like an unwritten and unsaid pact that they had each other backs. Their frequent emails were proof of that.

She remembered how she first bumped into Claude in The Louvre. They were both shocked to say the least to find each other there, ten thousand miles from the country they called home. Claude, being the haughty brat she was known to be, had of course sneered when she recognized it was Mary.

* * *

_“My, my, my. What do we have here: Mary de Guise, alone in Paris? Where’s my darling of a brother? Did he get sick of you already?”_

_Mary was aware how the blonde acted when it came to her brothers. Growing up, Mary heard about how Catherine shipped Claude away when her twin sisters passed away from pneumonia. It wasn’t Claude’s fault or doing, but Catherine had found it difficult to look at her, much less be around her. Catherine had this weird notion that it would be unfair to the late twins to love Claude wholeheartedly. So the innocent Claude was sent to boarding school in France, only to return to New York for the holidays or summer break. Catherine hardly gave her any attention, always doting on her sons the most. It was strange, Mary and her mother would think. Didn’t the mother usually spoil her one and only daughter, especially after losing the twins?_

_Brown eyes darkened. “Oh, hello Claude. Maybe you can ask him yourself the next time you’re back in New York? If you’re ever back, of course. Anyway, have a good day. It was nice bumping into you."_ _Having said that, she brushed Claude’s shoulder and continued to tour the museum._ _Despite the circumstances she was in, Mary was trained to never forget about her manners no matter how much she loathed the person she was dealing with._

_“Wait, what!?” Claude exclaimed. Her brother, despite having the looks, fame and power, had always been in love with Mary. Although he had a few years of fooling around with other girls, after he had gotten together with Mary, Francis was just a lovesick puppy. As much as she found her brother annoying, they were… good together. Mary wasn’t afraid of Catherine and she certainly knew how and when to put her foot down against Catherine’s crazy notions. It was something no girl would ever do, even for Francis._

_Claude eyed the disappearing figure and chased after her. She had to know what had happened._

* * *

"We didn't think you would come," Greer said, linking her arms with Mary as she walked them to their table. "I didn't think I would too, considering all the workload my mother bombarded on me." Mary replied. "So, how are you and Leith?"

The Norwood heiress rolled her eyes. "Same old. He's still working his bum off in my father's company in order to be recognized by the family. I still don't understand why they can't accept him. It's the new age, for goodness sake! Not the 1900’s."

Mary chuckled. "They will one day; you'll see. It'll be a challenge to put Leith down when he graduated with honors." Greer and Leith had been together since their first year of college in Yale. Leith was an mechanical engineer scholar while Greer was a finance major.

"That's true. Father doesn't know just how many Yale alumni are trying steal Baylard away. Maybe it's time I tell him. But anyway, you up to staying up late tonight? No early morning meetings tomorrow?" Her hazelnut eyes bore into her dark brown orbs and Mary instantly knew she wasn't talking about just hanging out all night.

She pursed her lips, unsure on what to reply. Greer was the first friend she ever made. Unlike the other kids who were snotty and constantly bragged about their family's wealth, Greer Norwood was genuinely simple and easy to be with. As they grew older, Mary and Greer found themselves in each other's company not only during these events, but in school and other times as well.

But the thing about Greer was that she was everyone's friend. Not that it was a bad thing of course, but there were only certain things one could only share with people like her.

"Don't worry, my mother was decent enough to let me sleep in. I don't have anything planned until the afternoon."

Looking around at the place, Mary realized that not much had changed with her friends. True, they had grown older, changed their looks and their sense of style but all in all, nothing much had really changed. They were the same people five years ago. And she wasn't sure if that was a positive or negative thing.

Then she saw a flicker of blonde hair in the corner of her eye. She felt him approaching. Maybe he was moving around? Her heart felt him come closer, like when they were younger. He was under her skin like a radar attached to her veins. Until now, she refused to understand why her body always reacted when he was around.

"Mary! It's great to have you back," Lola tapped her shoulder with a grin. "Wine?"

Mary tugged her lips to smile, hoping it came out natural. And it did, somehow.

Seeing Lola after all these years reminded her why it was wrong to feel anything at all for the blonde man that once owned her heart.

 

**TBC**


End file.
